Confused About Notice Period: Should This Employee Get Paid for Leaving Abruptly?

Dear Friends,

I'm caught in a big problem. I have recently changed my job and have been appointed to set up the HR Department in the organization.

There was an employee who had joined us and left the organization without any notification from his side. He was about to complete a year in our organization.

He was also asked by the management to submit all the records (he was in the Marketing Department), but nothing was clearly stated to him regarding leaving the organization.

He claims that since the management had asked him to provide all the records, he thought they were asking him to resign. Additionally, he had requested a raise during this time, which the management rejected.

So, is he eligible to receive pay for a month as a notice period? He was not reporting to the office, and he did not inform anyone about his absence.

As per normal policies, there should be a one-month notice period from either side or 1 month's salary in lieu of notice.

I'm really confused about this situation. Kindly help me out.

Also, please advise on which act or policy should be followed in this case.

Dear nick18_in,

It is a normal contractual issue. Since he has not submitted his resignation, send a show cause notice asking him to explain his long absence and why you should not terminate him from the service. Provide a 15-day gap. Afterward, send a termination notice demanding the return of all company belongings he has taken and settlement of accounts. Send all letters via registered mail with acknowledgment due.

Let me know if you need further assistance.

Dattatri
Company Secretary

Dear nick18_in (here, I too would suggest you mention your name),

Going through your posting, one thing immediately strikes me, which is this is a typical case of gross miscommunication and misunderstanding on both the employee and the employer ends. What I would suggest you do is first talk to his reporting manager about his performance and whether the particular employee would be welcome back to his job. Then, call the employee to the office to discuss it along with his reporting manager to clarify things. If both sides are okay, then you can ask him to submit a leave letter for the period he has been absent and either you can pay for the period with your management's approval or explain to the employee that since the misunderstanding started from his end, he would have to forfeit the pay for the period he was absent.

Hope this clarifies your query. Also, it would be great if you could post to the forum on how the problem was actually solved.

Warm Regards,
Samba Siva.